A trip to the seaside is the ultimate British summer tradition, but the bill for a day out to the coast can start long before Brits have even stepped onto the sand.
New research by temporary car insurance experts Tempcover ranks 30 popular seaside destinations by comparing the average cost and Google review ratings of car parks within a 40-minute walk of the beach. Prices were collected for a four-hour stay on a single fixed Saturday.* The analysis reveals where beach day-trippers can pay the least for parking relative to how those car parks are rated.
Highest-Ranked For Parking Value
Good news for value hunters: a great day by the sea doesn’t have to come with a hefty parking bill. The top of the leaderboard is filled with beaches where well-rated car parks come at a fraction of the cost of the pricier spots in the table.
Leading the way is Mablethorpe Beach, celebrated for its award-winning, pristine coastline, where nearby car parks pair a 4.46 car park review score with a £4.14 average fee to claim the joint top spot.
Alongside it, Whitley Bay and Long Sands North (Tynemouth), both famous for their vast, golden sands, offer the cheapest parking in the study at just £1.80 and £1.50 respectively.
Southsea (£5.60) and Teignmouth (£4.80) complete the top five, both pairing mid-range fees with strong car park review scores of 4.42 and 4.24.
| Rank | Beach | Region | Average Parking Cost | Average Review Rating | Overall Score /10 |
| 1⬆ | Mablethorpe Beach | East Midlands | £4.14 | 4.46 | 9.49 |
| 1⬆ | Whitley Bay | North East | £1.80 | 4.35 | 9.49 |
| 2⬆ | Southsea | South East | £5.60 | 4.42 | 8.45 |
| 2⬆ | Teignmouth | South West | £4.80 | 4.24 | 8.45 |
| 2⬆ | Long Sands North (Tynemouth) | North East | £1.50 | 4.20 | 8.45 |
(No.1 = highest ranked)
Lowest Ranked for Parking Value
At the other end of the table, the data showed that a day at some of the country’s best loved beaches can come with steeper parking costs. These are the spots where the highest fees met the lowest car park review scores.
Brighton Beach, famous for its iconic pier and vibrant pebble shoreline, sits at the bottom of the ranking: its nearby car parks average a £19.00 parking fee alongside a 3.08 review score. Bournemouth Beach follows, with car parks averaging £11.80 and a 3.11 review score.
| Rank | Beach | Region | Average Parking Cost | Average Review Rating | Overall Score /10 |
| 1⬇ | Brighton Beach | South East | £19.00 | 3.08 | 0.00 |
| 2⬇ | Bournemouth Beach | South West | £11.80 | 3.11 | 0.34 |
| 3⬇ | Great Yarmouth | East of England | £8.42 | 3.80 | 1.72 |
| 4⬇ | Whitstable | South East | £9.76 | 3.81 | 1.73 |
| 5⬇ | Blackpool | North West | £7.52 | 3.74 | 2.42 |
(No.1 = lowest-ranked)
The Regional Highlights
The study also highlights parking value differences within individual regions.
- East Midlands: Skegness Beach is a solid mid-tier option, with a 4.13 review score and £5.58 average parking cost.
- South East: This region appears at both extremes with Whitstable (£9.76) and Folkestone Beach (£10.56) sitting in the bottom half on parking price.
- South West: Cornwall’s famous Fistral Beach (£6.00 parking) ranks lower on a 3.70 review score, while Weymouth has cheaper parking (£5.32) and a 3.99 review score.
- North West: St Annes Beach (£3.38 parking / 4.16 rating) ranks above neighbouring Blackpool, which sits at the bottom on higher parking fees (£7.52).
- East of England: Lowestoft South Beach leads the region for value (£5.78 parking / 4.29 rating), ahead of Hunstanton where parking averages £11.20.
- Yorkshire and the Humber: Scarborough Beach sits in the top half on a 4.24 review rating against a £7.05 parking fee, while Whitby Beach ranks lower on an £8.24 average cost.
- Wales: Llandudno (£5.10 parking / 4.14 rating) is Wales’ best-value coastal destination in the study, ahead of Tenby South (£5.60 parking / 4.01 rating).
Claire Wills-Mckissick, temporary car insurance expert at Tempcover adds:
“The data shows a day at the seaside could start with a £19 parking bill, but often the steeper parking is found at the busier coastal destinations where parking is limited and demand is high, so the cost can reflect how sought-after they are.
The good news is that there are usually well-rated, low-cost car parks within a short walk of even the most popular beaches, so it pays to check before you set off. It’s worth checking the reviews as well as the price – the top-rated car parks tend to be the ones that are also easy to find and just a short stroll from the sand.
“Travelling as a group is another easy saving. Rather than arriving in two or three cars and paying to park each one, temporary car insurance lets you add a friend or relative to your policy for the day, so you can carpool, share the driving, and pay for a single space.”
Photo by Ollie Craig: https://www.pexels.com/photo/drone-shot-of-parked-cars-near-beach-8793434/
